


Which Gives Us Untold Opportunity

by Chash



Series: That's Gonna Leave a Mark [1]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, M/M, Minor Bellamy Blake/Clarke Griffin, Soulmate-Identifying Marks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-05-21
Updated: 2017-05-21
Packaged: 2018-11-03 04:21:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,529
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/10959537
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chash/pseuds/Chash
Summary: Nate did not realize it was possible to trigger soulmarks remotely, but if he had, he probably could have guessed that he would find his soulmate in an MMORPG.Unfortunately, since he didn't knowanddidn't notice when the tattoo showed up, all he knows is that he and his soulmate are playing the same game and in the same guild. It's really not a lot to go on.





	Which Gives Us Untold Opportunity

**Author's Note:**

  * For [jennycaakes](https://archiveofourown.org/users/jennycaakes/gifts).



> I haven't gone to bed yet, which means that it is still officially Jenn's birthday. That is how time works. HAPPY BIRTHDAY JENN!!

"Did you notice you found your soulmate?"

Nate freezes as he's reaching up to get coffee out of the cabinet. "What?"

"I'm assuming that thing on your back is your soulmark," Bellamy says, sounding smug. He's sitting on the couch drinking tea, watching Nate with a smirk. "Or you went out and got a tramp stamp."

Nate cranes around, trying to see whatever's on his lower back, but there's no way. The anatomy of it just doesn't work out. "Holy shit. I got a soulmark?"

"Looks like it, yeah." He comes over with his phone, crouches down to take a picture. "It's a dragon. It's pretty badass."

"Don't be jealous it's better than your crown."

"Fuck you, my crown is awesome," says Bellamy, flexing his arm as he stands to show it off properly.

Nate remembers when Bellamy got his tattoo. In theory, the knowledge of one's soulmate is instantaneous; you feel the slight prickle of the mark, you find the person you don't know, the one who's new to your life, and that's it. If it happens early enough, your parents will know before you even understand what's happening. Nate has heard about soulmates who met on the playground at age two or three, their parents watching the marks appear as one child hands another a toy.

Bellamy got his mark when they were at a bar, but Nate didn't notice it until he was yelling at the blonde girl running trivia because the answer she had was clearly _wrong_ , and he saw the crown on her collarbone and the corresponding one on Bellamy's bicep, and getting to hold up his hand and say, "Hey, did you guys know you have matching tattoos?" was, in all honesty, one of the best moments in his entire life.

But if you don't notice right away, it can get complicated. You don't need a lot of contact to trigger the soulmark; brushing by someone in the hall can do it, and the prickling is an itch, nothing more. Nate remembers being a kid, being convinced every slight tingle he felt was the tattoo budding on his skin, but by twenty-eight, he's kind of accepted that most things he feels are not his soulmark, and most people he meets are not his soulmate. That's how it is. He barely thinks about it anymore.

Bellamy hands over the phone, and Nate can't help staring. It _is_ badass, blue with silver highlights. It's wingless and serpentine, a couple inches long and curving like a lower-case m over the band of his pajamas.

"Huh," he says. "When do you think it showed up?"

"I don't know, it's your soulmark. I don't think it was there yesterday, though."

"Yeah, I don't either. Where's your girlfriend?"

"Still asleep. You think she looks at your lower back more than I do?"

"It's pretty hard to resist."

"Have you met anyone recently?" 

"Depends. Does the internet count?"

Usually when he says that about his social interactions, he's being sarcastic, but this time, it's a legitimate question. He got into a new MMORPG last week, and that's been eating most of his free time. Yesterday, he might not have left the apartment.

Which means either Bellamy or Clarke spontaneously developed a new soulmark, or he managed to meet the person he is destined to spend his life with playing _2149: After Earth_. Which, to be fair, he assumes they would be.

"Huh," says Bellamy, thoughtful. "I don't actually know."

They're reading their third article about non-physical soulmate contact on Bellamy's laptop when Clarke staggers out of Bellamy's room and directly into the kitchen for coffee. But once she's gotten her caffeine, she comes in and settles in on Bellamy's other side.

"How often do you look at Miller's lower back?" Bellamy asks.

"All the time. That's definitely his hottest body part."

"Thanks," says Nate, dry.

"How often do you look at Miller's lower back? Why are we talking about it?"

"Soulmark," says Bellamy, and that does wake her up.

"Seriously? When? Where? Show me."

Nate gets up so she can see, and she's appropriately impressed with it. But, of course, that just leads to the inevitable question.

"Who is it?" she asks.

"I'm pretty sure it's someone from my _2149_ guild," Nate admits. By all indications, it's completely possible for online contact to trigger soulmarks, but it's usually in the context of dating websites. Which sounds like way less of a pain. You'd be looking for it, then.

"I don't actually understand all those words, but it sounds like he's your type." She clucks her tongue. "How many people are in a guild? What is a guild?"

"This one's not huge, but--over five hundred."

"You didn't actually talk to all of them yesterday, right? How much do you have to talk to get the mark?" Clarke asks, because she's that kind of practical.

"There's a guild chat," he says. "All he had to do was talk in it."

"So that's easy, right?" asks Bellamy. "You just go in the chat and ask if anyone's got a dragon soulmark. Problem solved. Soulmate found."

"The guild chat is a fucking mess," Nate says. "It's half just people asking for items they need and healing and a lot of, uh--lowkey gamer homophobia."

Clarke winces. "Ouch."

"I'm used to it," says Nate, with a shrug. He doesn't _get it_ , but he's used to it. Guys who play a lot of video games don't tend to get a lot of girls, so maybe they think calling everyone else gay will reinforce their own straightness. The logic is lost on Nate, but he's never claimed to understand straight dudes.

But there were plenty of non-douchey comments in the guild chat too, so--probably his soulmate was one of them. One of the anonymous people asking for a heal or looking for volunteers to go on a supply run or whatever. He's Nate's soulmate, right? And Nate feels pretty confident that his soulmate isn't going to casually call anyone a homo for failing to kill an enemy in time.

"So, what are you going to do about it?" Bellamy asks.

Nate rubs his lower back, where the mark should be. The skin doesn't feel any different. Nothing feels any different. But there it is anyway: he has a soulmark. And, somewhere in the world, he has a soulmate.

"Play a shit ton of _2149_ ," he says. "He's in there somewhere, right?"

Bellamy snorts. "And you definitely weren't going to play a shit ton of it before."

"Definitely not," Nate agrees. "But come on. This is for my future, dude."

*

It is kind of exciting, having his soulmark. It's especially exciting having it on his back, invisible, this secret that no one knows about. And there's a comforting kind of closure to it, too; he might not know who his soulmate is, or where he is, or how to find him, but he exists, and he can stop wondering about that.

He still has to wonder if he's ever going to find him, but that's a separate issue. After all, they're soulmates, right? Soulmates find each other.

Unfortunately, _2149_ is, it must be said, kind of a middling game. It needs a few patches and some more missions before it actually gets good, but it's not quite so bad that Nate is upset he's stuck playing it and trying to figure out how to find a needle in a haystack of guild chats. But if not for the soulmate thing, he might not actually still be playing it. There's too much PvP, and the worldbuidling makes no sense.

Which is why he decides to go onto his favorite gaming forum and post about the whole thing. He doesn't actually post there much, just read, so it's possible, if not particularly likely, that his soulmate is here too, and they're both just lurkers. Maybe whoever it is will see, and respond, and then--

Well, the next step is unclear. Maybe he lives in another country, on another continent. Maybe he and Nate will have to move heaven and earth to find each other. But presumably it would be worth it. That's how soulmates are supposed to be.

 **Subject** : Soulmarks  
Posted by **NegotiNater** @ 15:47 EST on 5/25/17  
Weird question, but has anyone ever gotten a soulmark while gaming? I'm pretty sure my soulmate is in the Flokru guild in 2149, no idea how to find him though. Any advice anyone has is appreciated.

 **Subject** : Re: Soulmarks  
Posted by **AlicornPrinceBraeburn** @ 16:01 EST on 5/25/17  
What's the soulmark???? Pics or it didn't happen.

 **Subject** : Re: Soulmarks  
Posted by **GameOfThrawns** @ 16:15 EST on 5/25/17  
Congrats!! I met my soulmate on Hearthstone. My mark's on my right hand so I saw it show up as soon as the game started. I was so scared she didn't see hers and wasn't going to accept the friend request, but she did. We're coming up on two years together now :) 

**Subject** : Re: Soulmarks  
Posted by **NerosNeptune** @ 16:49 EST on 5/25/17  
My soulmate sniped me playing Halo in college. Love at first kill. Good luck finding your guildmate!!

The messages keep pouring in, and it's nice to see Nate's not alone in the whole thing, but none of it is particularly helpful. He could post a picture of the mark, he still has the one Bellamy took, but--anyone can pretend to have the same soulmark he has. He wants to be sure.

So he goes on playing _2149_ , going on as many raids as he has time for, being positively _outgoing_ , by his terms. He chats and tries to talk to people, but they're all just a blur of usernames, unfamiliar pixels. He has people who leave a good impression on him, people he sort of likes, but he has no idea which of them were online on May 20, which of them may have been in the group chat at the same time as him and said enough to trigger his soulmark.

Which raises an issue that hadn't even _occurred_ to him, and he goes and collapses onto the couch next to Bellamy.

"Rough night?"

"My soulmate might not even _have_ his mark," Nate groans. "It requires _sufficient interaction_. I could have read some shit he said, but he didn't read mine, so--he might not even _know_."

Bellamy pats his head, consoling. "Always told you you spent too much time on the internet, man."

Nate rolls his eyes and punches him lightly in the leg. "Dude, fuck you."

*

The other unexpected consequence of the existence of his soulmark is that it's no longer something that gives him useful information about _new_ people he meets. In theory, the cute barista who starts working at his favorite coffee shop, or his new coworker, or the guy smiling at him at the bar, any of them _could_ be his soulmate. But the mark is already on his skin, and it's not just going to pop up, helpful, to let him know that he's found the person he's meant to be with.

He's supposed to have an answer, and instead, he just has a giant question mark on his back, one that reacted to something he can't identify, and doesn't know how to identify. Maybe he should update his username. Blue_Dragon or something. Maybe that would do the trick.

"I still think you should just post in the guild chat," Bellamy tells him. They're waiting for Clarke and one of her friends at a bar, and Nate's back itches. Nate's back _always_ itches, these days. He can't believe he didn't notice when he got the mark, because now he can't fucking forget it. Now it feels like it's fucking burning him. "You don't have to say it's a guy. Just say, _hey, anyone have a dragon soulmark? I got it from the chat._ "

"Jesus. You make it sound like an STD."

"I'm just saying. It's not actually that suspicious. Maybe he'll see it."

"He might not even have his."

"Yeah, well, maybe he'll get it if you ask. How cool would that be? You ask about him and then he sees the mark show up right as he reads the question. You could probably sell the rights to Lifetime or something."

"I don't think Lifetime is really into guys making out. Isn't it TV for women?"

"Women are definitely into guys making out," says Clarke, sliding in next to Bellamy. "Haven't you ever been on the internet?"

"I don't think Lifetime has," says Clarke's friend. He's cute and looks a little nervous, but in a way that makes him cuter. "Just based on the movies I've seen them make about it. Lots of housewives getting cyber-stalked and murdered." He gives Nate and Bellamy a bright if somewhat sheepish smile. "That was weird, right? I probably should have introduced myself before I got into my in-depth knowledge of Lifetime movies."

"No, you want to start there," says Bellamy. "Get us hooked." He offers his hand, and the guy shakes it. "You must be Monty."

"Yeah. You're Clarke's soulmate?"

"Somehow, yeah. This is my roommate, Miller."

"Nice to meet you," says Nate, and he shakes Monty's hand too. His back tingles a little, and he can't help letting his eyes dart over the guy. He's got a nice smile, and big brown eyes, and, yeah, he's totally Nate's type. "Apparently the I'm the only one who doesn't know who you are already."

"Monty and I went to college together," Clarke supplies. "And now he's moving here."

"That's the plan, yeah," says Monty. "I just had my final job interview and they said they're going to hire me, so--"

"So first round's on Monty," Clarke teases.

"Shouldn't you be paying? To congratulate me?"

"Okay, first round's on me, second round is on Monty."

"That's more like it." He flags down the bartender and they order, and Nate tries not to notice the way he bites his lip when he smiles.

Bellamy doesn't have that problem, of course, but he turns his attention to Monty anyway. "Okay, but seriously, I want to hear more about these Lifetime movie plots. Maybe one of them can help Miller out."

"What do you need help with?"

Nate rubs the back of his neck. It's his first time explaining the whole thing to a stranger, let alone a cute stranger. "I found my soulmate online, but I didn't notice for a day or so, so I have no idea where I found them. And I don't know if it was, uh--reciprocal."

"So, like, someone you saw retweeted or something? That level of contact?"

"Or something," says Nate. "So, yeah. Bellamy noticed it the next day, I'm pretty sure, but--I have no idea who caused it."

"That seems like more of a Hallmark movie premise," says Monty. "See, everyone _says_ Lifetime movies are the sappy ones, but those are really the ones where, like, some guy is stalking someone and finds out what her soulmark is and kidnaps her real soulmate and gets a tattoo to look just like his and she slowly realizes she's living with a psycho. Hallmark is where you go for romantic comedies. Usually with dogs. I should stop talking, huh?"

"No, this is awesome," says Bellamy. "Keep going."

Monty raises his eyebrows in Nate's direction, and Nate grins. "Yeah, he's right. I want all of your knowledge about romantic comedies. You're clearly the expert."

"Okay, cool." He takes a sip of his drink. "Let's talk about movies aimed at adult women that presuppose Santa Claus is real, because _what the fuck_."

Nate can't remember the last time he laughed so hard, and it's only when he and Bellamy are heading home, half-drunk and arm-in-arm to support each other, that he realizes he never asked about Monty's soulmate.

*

"So, uh, Clarke's friend," Nate says to Bellamy, the next day while Bellamy's working on dinner.

"Monty?"

"Yeah."

"Cute, right?" Bellamy asks, smirking.

"Dude, shut up."

"What? He is. And your type."

"My soulmate's my type." He clears his throat. "But I was kind of wondering if, uh, he had a soulmate."

"Yeah, I was wondering about that too. He seems like the type who might play _2149_. Not to stereotype, but I was getting a pretty strong nerd vibe. I figured you would have just told him where your soulmate actually came from. Not that twitter bullshit."

"I didn't want to overshare."

"You're inexplicably embarrassed about being a gamer and wanted him to think you were cool," Bellamy says, because Bellamy is the fucking worst.

"I am cool, fuck you."

"Clarke didn't mention Monty's soulmate situation to me. But he lives here now, so you should definitely just tell him about your whole thing."

"It's not like I actually think he's my soulmate," Nate grumbles, because he _doesn't_. No cute boy has ever been his soulmate before, so why should one start now? "I was just curious."

"Someone's your soulmate," Bellamy says, not unreasonably. "Could be him. I'll text her, but she's definitely just going to tell you to ask him yourself."

"Yeah, that's what I figured." The cat's already out of the bag, so he glares at the fridge and says, "He was cute, right?"

"Very cute," Bellamy agrees. "I'll get his number for you."

*

There's this awkward thing about asking about soulmates, which is that by asking, you're basically indicating an interest in the person you're asking, but also setting yourself up for an awkward rejection, because chances are good they're _not_ your soulmate, and then you have to decide what to do with the knowledge that you're interested in something that's not meant to be.

Which some people are, and Nate has been before, but--he's going to be disappointed, now. It feels different with the mark on his skin. Before, he was losing out on a theoretical soulmate. Now he has one, and anyone he likes who isn't his soulmate just feels--awkward.

So he doesn't actually bring it up with Monty. Monty knows he has a soulmark, after all, and hasn't asked what it is. That seems like a pretty good indication that Monty doesn't have one. If Monty had one, he would have mentioned it, right? So he can't be Nate's soulmate, and it's pointless to ask.

But unless he does, he still can't be _sure_.

It's not like he's avoiding the subject, exactly. They don't even see each other very often. Once a week, usually, when Clarke decides she wants to pretend she has a social circle, instead of just hanging out with Bellamy and/or her roommate. And Monty always seems to like him on those occasions. But Nate is always afraid of giving too much away, because until he does, he lives in possibility. Until he does, it _could_ be Monty. And every time he talks to him, he wants it to be, more and more, and it seems less and less likely.

Soulmates, Nate decides, are the fucking _worst_.

Monty's been in town for three months when he calls Nate for the first time. It's Saturday and Nate is playing _2149_ in a vaguely resentful way. He doesn't hate the game, but it's hard not to blame it for the fact that he has a soulmate he can't find, a soulmate who is probably _not_ Monty Green.

So the phone ringing is welcome, right up until Monty's name shows up on the display, and he freezes for a second in panic and confusion.

"Hey, everything okay?" he asks. 

Monty laughs. "Do you assume people only call you when it's an emergency?"

"Pretty much. If it's not an emergency, you can text."

"I'm at the train station, trying to figure out where to go. I was supposed to meet up with some coworkers and they canceled. I know Clarke and Bellamy have a date, so I thought you might be bored too? Or at least willing to let me come play video games on your couch. Bellamy said you were probably playing video games on your couch."

"Yeah, he's not wrong," Nate admits. "If that sounds good to you, come on over."

"Already on my way," says Monty. "See you in twenty minutes."

Nate spends those twenty minutes frantically tidying, even though Bellamy keeps the place cleaner than any other twenty-somethings he knows, and trying not to think about having Monty in his space. He feels like such an _asshole_ about it. He has a soulmate, and here he is, still wanting someone else.

But when he opens the door and sees Monty, all he can do is smile.

"Hey, sorry for inviting myself over," Monty says, smiling back.

"I don't mind. Like Bellamy said, I was just playing video games on my couch."

"Yeah? What were you playing?"

"Uh, _2149_? It's this--"

"MMO, yeah," says Monty. "Did it get better? I played for a few weeks when it first came out, but it was so buggy, I couldn't deal with it."

Nate's heart stops, and then starts pounding like crazy. "Yeah? When did you play?"

"Uh, I dunno? A couple weeks in May? Right around launch."

"Did you join a guild?"

He's looking increasingly confused. "Yeah, uh--Flokru? Is that how you say it? Why?"

"That's, uh--I think that's how I got my soulmark. All I was doing that day was playing. I think it was from someone in the Flokru guild chat."

"Oh," says Monty. 

"But you don't have one, right?" he asks. "A soulmark."

There's a pause. "I guess not."

"You guess not?"

"I don't have one I can see, but I can't actually see all parts of my body. So, you know--if it's on my back or something, I won't know. It's been a while since anyone saw me naked."

It's so stupid, but--there's a _chance_. And Nate really wants to know.

"You want me to check for you?" he offers, and Monty's eyes snap up to his face.

Whatever he sees must reassure him, because he offers Nate a slow smile. "I want to see yours first."

He doesn't hesitate at all, just tugs his shirt off and turns around, showing Monty the mark just above the waist of his jeans.

"You know, this isn't actually the part of you I want to check out when you're not wearing a shirt," Monty says, casual, and Nate's heart lurches. He was pretty sure, but--it's nice to hear anyway. And then he feels the gentle press of Monty's fingers on his skin, making him shiver. "I like your soulmark."

"Thanks." He swallows. "I hope you've got one just like it."

"Yeah?" Monty asks. Nate can't read his tone.

"Not to be weird, but yeah."

"No, um--I hope so too." He pauses again. "Can we make out even if I don't?"

Nate thinks about responding, but it seems kind of stupid to say anything, when actions speak louder than words and are way more fun, so he just turns around so he can kiss Monty now. Monty melts into it immediately, mouth opening for Nate, hands sliding up Nate's arms as Nate tugs him in close, lining their hips up. He hasn't done this for a while, and he wants it, but--he wants so much _more_. And he can't decide if he needs to know now, or if he should just stop and find out--

"Miller--"

"Nate," he says. "It's weird when people call me Miller when we're making out."

"Nate," says Monty. "Can you--I really want to know."

"Yeah," says Nate, and pulls back so he can tug Monty's shirt off. It's not on his chest, of course, Monty would have known if it was, but Nate still takes a second to check him out.

"Flattering, but come on," Monty teases, and turns around. Nate's heart sinks at the sight of his smooth, bare back, and it takes him a second to find his voice.

"Nope."

"Well, there's still--" Nate can see his hands moving, undoing the button on his jeans, and then he's pushing them and his boxers down and off in one fluid motion, and Nate's breath stops.

"Yeah," he says, and has to laugh. "Dude. You've got a dragon on your ass."

Monty laughs too. "On my _ass_?"

"Right cheek."

"Wow."

"You want a picture?"

"Is it weird if I say yes? Am I not supposed to check out my own ass?"

"I'm checking it out," Nate says. He gets his phone out of his pocket and takes a picture, leaning over Monty's shoulder to show him the picture. "See?"

"Wow. Badass. And my ass looks awesome." And then he looks over his shoulder, meets Nate's eye. "So, we're soulmates, huh?"

It was easy to get distracted from that simple fact, but now he's aware that he's pressed against Monty's back, and Monty is _naked_ , and Monty is his soulmate. It's huge and a little overwhelming and actually the biggest, giddiest relief of his life, that they're supposed to be like this.

That when he slides his arm around Monty, Monty leans into it, and when he presses his lips against Monty's neck, he shivers.

"Soulmates," he agrees. "Want to make out?"

Monty laughs, twists around in his arms and kisses him again. "I thought you'd never ask."

*

"So, did you guys figure out how it happened?" Bellamy asks. It's three days later and he hasn't stopped grinning. Nate hasn't either, but it's his soulmate, so that's to be expected. Bellamy is just the kind of guy who is happy for his friends on a superhuman level.

"I don't write down every single thing I do in video games in a diary," says Monty. "I know it looks like I might, but that's a level of weird that's beyond even me." He pauses. "That being said, I consulted my best friend Jasper and we think that we were looking for people to go on a raid with us that day, so that's probably when Nate saw the message."

"And you don't know if you saw anything from him?" 

"No, I have no idea when I got the mark."

"Not enough people check out his ass," Nate adds, and Monty elbows him. "Hey. It's not my fault that's where it is."

"Maybe it is. Maybe it's your destiny to have a soulmate with a mark on his ass. That could be on you. We don't know how it works."

"Clarke does really like my arms," says Bellamy. "So that checks out."

"And Monty really likes my lower back?"

Monty pats his arm. "I love everything about you, obviously."

It feels like it should be too soon, but they're also, well, soulmates. And Monty's admitted to having a crush on him too, right from the start, and now they know they were supposed to be.

Destiny is fucked up, but Nate appreciates having it on his side.

"Obviously," he says, and turns his attention back to Bellamy. "We figured it out. Who cares when it happened, right?"

Bellamy shakes his head, smile fond. "Yeah," he agrees. "You got there."


End file.
